See the Stars
by dirtymartini
Summary: Pure fluff. The Metacrisis Doctor and Rose go on a special trip in their newly grown TARDIS.


Synopsis: The Metacrisis Doctor and Rose go on a special trip in their newly grown TARDIS

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><p>The Doctor bounded around the TARDIS, pulling levers, flipping switches, turning knobs, and pushing buttons on the controls that would send her soaring into orbit. A little girl, barely older than a toddler, raced after him giggling uncontrollably.<p>

"Slow down, I can't catch up!" she gasped.

"I know, slowpoke! You're never gonna fly the TARDIS on your own if you can't keep up with her! She likes to keep us guessing, the old girl!"

The little girl stopped, panting slightly, swinging her arms restlessly by her sides. "I'm only four!" she exclaimed.

"Four?" said the Doctor incredulously. "Why, by the time I was four I was running off to Earth all on my own!"

"No you weren't!" she challenged.

"Well, no, I wasn't, but you're far cleverer than I was. I expect more of you!"

The TARDIS lurched and swayed indicating they had reached their destination. The little girls eyes lit up excitedly.

"Are you ready, sweetheart?" he asked, looking down at her now with so much adoration he wondered how he was still standing.

She grinned and nodded enthusiastically, making her blonde curls bounce, her rosy cheeks brightening her fair skin. The Doctor bent down as she ran to him, and he scooped her up into his arms.

"Look at you, all pink and yellow." He whispered into her hair, kissing her head gently. "Are you ready to see the stars, my darling girl?"

"Yes Daddy, I want to see the stars!" she said, wriggling excitedly in his arms.

"Alright," he agreed softly, and walked to the TARDIS doors. Bouncing his daughter up slightly higher on his hip, he pulled the doors open to reveal a vast nebula of every colour. Millions of stars twinkling at the two of them, but The Doctor wasn't even looking. He was watching his daughter's face as she saw the stars for the first time.

She gasped and her eyes lit up, practically reflecting the intense brilliance she saw before her. "Daddy, they're so pretty!"

"Aren't they just," he breathed, still staring at his little girl.

"Have you been there? Have you been to all of them?" she asked, in awe.

"Most of them," he replied, somewhat boastfully looking out at them at last. He pointed a finger far to his right. "That one there, the purplish looking one, that one's called Argenfonce, beautiful place, the flowers will sing to you if you stroke their petals. We'll go there one day, if you'd like."

"Oh, yes!" she agreed breathlessly, leaning forward in her father's arms to get a closer look, slipping out of his grasp just a little. Although he knew the TARDIS was protecting them, The Doctor's not inconsiderable protective instincts kicked in, and he tightened his grip on his little daughter, willing his single heart to slow back to normal. Sighing, and chuckling at the similarities between the two of them, The Doctor continued with his narrative.

"And _that _one there," he began, moving his pointer finger slightly to the left. "That's where I defeated the Daleks and saved the locals from extermination. Lovely people, looked like Badgers but they were orange. And that one…"

Leaning against one of the coral pillars of the TARDIS, Rose watched her husband show their daughter all the extraordinary places he had once shown her, relaying tales of all the extraordinary things that she had seen him do. That they had done together. Rose found herself lost in one of those moments where she couldn't believe her own luck- couldn't believe what her life had turned out to be. She had gotten everything she had ever wanted, and now she watched them both stand at the doors of the wonderfully impossible machine that they called home, even more so than the flat back in London. Rose felt herself swelling with emotion, and a tear rolled down her cheek as she grinned.

As if sensing how she felt, The Doctor looked over his shoulder at his wife, grinning in that way he reserved only for her. Shifting the little girl higher on his hip, he extended his hand to Rose. She chuckled and wiped away the tear, taking his hand gratefully and gripping it tightly, and he squeezed it back lovingly.

"What do you think, my love?" Rose asked her daughter, resting her head against the little girls arm.

"It's wonderful," she said breathlessly. "Thank you."

"Oh, you are welcome, my darling." said The Doctor. "Happy Birthday, Astrid."

Astrid grinned bright enough to rival the red giant in front of her.

"Do you know why you're called Astrid?" The Doctor asked, and the little girl shook her head, turning to face him.

"I knew a woman once, and _her_ name was Astrid. She was so kind, and so brave. All she wanted was to see the stars, and I promised her I'd take her. I never got the chance. But you, my love, I promise that when you are old enough, I will take you to see them all. All of us. Together."

The Doctor turned to Rose, and the two shared a warm smile.

"Yes," Astrid agreed softly. "We will."

The three stood in silence as the TARDIS drifted them along the nebula, all at once rendered speechless by the unimaginable beauty they were witnessing and knew somehow, that it was only the beginning for them.


End file.
